I open a history tutorial class in Daming

Chapter 152 Be a decent man and then become an emperor!
Ming Dynasty, the tenth year of Hongwu.

After returning to Kunning Palace, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao sat on the couch and looked at each other.

Zhu Biao was still young, and couldn't help asking:

"Dad, what do you think of the two Beijing-made methods that the fourth brother mentioned this time?"

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned, shook his head and said:
"Although it sounds good and what the fourth brother said makes sense, what they are arguing about is not without reason."

"The fourth brother himself has that kind of background. He will never be granted the title of a vassal king. Someone must guard the north. Giving up Yingtian Prefecture and moving away directly would make it seem that he is not in the right position. So he must implement the two capitals system."

"It's just that the teacher once roughly talked about what the fourth prince did after he ascended the throne in history. The difference between the two capital systems he proposed in history and now is too big, so I really can't say for sure..."

Although the father and son did not deliberately speak in a riddle, Empress Ma, who was standing next to them, was too confused.

She moved closer and asked in a low voice:
"What are you talking about the two-capital system? Tell me about it. Was it invented by the fourth brother?"

Empress Ma did not care much about government affairs. She had heard that Zhu Di later ascended the throne and seemed to have made the Ming Dynasty very successful, so she was quite curious about the thoughts of her fourth son.

Zhu Yuanzhang certainly would not be shy about anything when talking to his own wife, so he told her roughly about Zhu Di's plan in the second year of Yongle, as well as what people discussed afterwards.

After saying this, he stroked his beard and pondered:

"You know what? We never considered moving the capital there before. But after hearing what you said today, Beiping is indeed a good place."

Zhu Biao was a little speechless:

"Didn't you feel uncomfortable that this place was once the capital of the Yuan Dynasty?"

It is true that there were many factors behind the establishment of the capital in Yingtian when the Ming Dynasty was founded. Perhaps it was because Zhu Yuanzhang himself started his career in the south, or because there were still many enemies in the south that needed to be eliminated when the country was founded. However, the fact that Peking was once the capital of the Yuan Dynasty also had a certain influence, and Zhu Yuanzhang had no intention of going there.

Zhu Yuanzhang rolled his eyes at his son's honesty:
"Even if Peking wasn't the Yuan capital, we wouldn't have thought of moving there."

"Besides the Yuan Dynasty, that place was the capital again, and it can be traced back to the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Our Central Plains is so big, there are more than a few places that can be the capital."

"Look, the Chang'an that Li Er mentioned today is Xi'an Prefecture of our Ming Dynasty, which was the ancient capital of 13 dynasties. There is also Luoyang not far away, or Kaifeng Prefecture, which is located in the Central Plains and was the capital of the Song Dynasty, or the current Yingtian Prefecture. When it comes to choosing a capital, any place catches our eyes before Beiping."

"If the fourth brother had not started his career in Yan at that time, he would not have moved the capital there without hesitation."

Empress Ma and Zhu Biao looked at each other and both realized that the old man was saying one thing and thinking another.

They said that Beijing was not as good as other places, but they were the two people who knew Zhu Yuanzhang best in the world. If this person hadn't been tempted, he wouldn't have thought about it so much for so long.

After a pause, Zhu Biao said helplessly:
"Dad, if you also want to go north, then we can discuss it. Just speak frankly. We are the only three of us in this hall now. Why are you hesitating?"

Zhu Yuanzhang said nothing.

He was indeed a little tempted.

Although Yingtian Prefecture is prosperous and wealthy, and close to my hometown Fengyang, in the final analysis, this place will eventually have to be moved.

Apart from other things, now that the vassal kings have been taken back to the capital, it is not a long-term solution to have no trustworthy people guarding the north. The capital should either be closer to the Central Plains, or to the northwest or northeast. In short, it cannot stay in the southern coast forever. Otherwise, the Song Dynasty will end up in a corner after moving south.

Zhu Yuanzhang had fought against the Yuan dogs before, so he knew best what kind of people those people on the grassland were. Even if he scared them away today, they would pop up again in a dozen or dozens of years, just like weeds that could not be burned or cut.

Look, wasn’t Emperor Chongzhen of the late Ming Dynasty killed by the internal strife of the Ming Dynasty and the border invading Tartars?

"Beijing seems suitable, but we are also worried that there will be another fool like Zhu Qizhen and Chongzhen who will come out and attack us at our doorstep."

Zhu Yuanzhang finally grumbled:
"There's something wrong with the Fourth Brother's offspring, and your offspring isn't much better. In history, when we handed over the country to that idiot Zhu Yunwen, we definitely paved a smooth path for him. If he had any brains, he wouldn't have been defeated by the Fourth Brother. What happened? The Fourth Brother was forced into a dead end!"

Zhu Biao wanted to roll his eyes.

But no matter how favored he was, he knew that if he rolled his eyes at his father now, he would have to hide behind his mother later.

So Zhu Biao patiently asked again:

"Then where do you think it would be safest to locate the capital of this country?"

Old Zhu remained silent again.

Zhu Biao sighed:

"Father, if the emperor is incompetent, it doesn't matter where you put the capital, the result will be the same."

"You know that Xi'an is the ancient capital of 13 dynasties, but is it safe? When the Qin Dynasty was destroyed, Liu Bang entered the pass and occupied Xianyang. There is no need to say more about the Three Kingdoms at the end of the Han Dynasty. At the end of the Sui Dynasty, it took Li Yuan only half a year from starting the rebellion to occupying Chang'an. At the end of the Tang Dynasty, Huang Chao entered Chang'an and trampled on the bones of officials and nobles... There are too many."

"We are in Yingtian Prefecture, and the Song Dynasty's Kaifeng Prefecture. If you want to talk about the loss of a country, then both places have experienced the loss of a country."

Zhu Yuanzhang wiped his face.

Of course he knew that what his son said was the truth, even if it didn't sound good, it was still the truth, but he just felt uncomfortable.

"When we started the rebellion, we shouted to expel the Tartars and restore China. You said that the Ming Dynasty was over, and we didn't expect our dynasty to last forever like Qin Shi Huang. But it's fine if the Central Plains are fighting among their own people, but we let the barbarians fight and let them rule the Central Plains. What's going on?"

"We can't stand Zhu Qizhen or Zhu Youjian, because they are both so stupid. The former was captured by the Tartars and spent a year on the grassland, while the latter directly let the Tartars seize the Ming Dynasty! If the capital was not in Peking, perhaps this wouldn't have to happen!"

Queen Ma couldn't bear to hear this anymore.

Queen Ma was very heroic. She pulled her son behind her and leaned over to her husband's face and asked:
"Oh, so what you said was that the capital of the Song Dynasty was originally in Kaifeng, not in the north but in the Central Plains. How were Emperors Huizong and Qinzong abducted? How did the Jingkang Incident happen? How were they driven to the south? If the south was so stable, how did the Battle of Yashan lead to the demise of the Song Dynasty?"

"Zhu Chongba, our son is filial and will not go against you. Just take advantage of his temper!"

"Instead of thinking about where to establish the capital, I think it would be better to figure out a set of rules so that future generations will know how to educate the crown prince and the princes!"

"Hasn't there been anyone like you who has conquered the world from south to north? You did it."

"When you were fighting, you always said that man can conquer nature. What's wrong with you now? You just want to pave the way for yourself, so that even if your descendants are all useless, you can still be a wise ruler lying in the palace? Is this your idea of ​​man conquering nature? Zhu Chongba, what are you thinking about? You didn't see me teaching my son a lesson in the past, right? Didn't I treat Biao'er like a treasure?" "A real wise ruler can pacify the world no matter where the capital is, no matter what natural disasters, man-made disasters, internal and external troubles there are!"

"Go, go, go back to your Wuying Palace, don't be an eyesore here!"

She wasn't that angry at first, but as she spoke she became really angry.

The emperor was actually ordered to expel him from his own queen's palace, and was directly kicked out of the door.

Zhu Yuanzhang stood at the door, feeling extremely unhappy, confused and ashamed.

The most unbearable thing was that he was the only one who was pushed out, while Zhu Biao was still left inside!
"Hmph... I don't understand!"

Old Zhu was outside, fuming and glaring, but he didn't quite understand why his wife suddenly lost her temper. He didn't dare to go back in for a while, so he could only go back to his Wuying Palace to work in a depressed mood.

…………

inside the door.

Zhu Biao looked at his mother, feeling helpless:
"Mom, why are you so angry all of a sudden? Not to mention Dad, even I don't understand what you are angry about now."

"You have to understand every time you are scolded, right?"

Queen Ma glared at him:
"What do you think?"

"Biao'er, have you ever noticed that your father has been increasingly trying to pave the way for you recently? He wants to deal with Hu Weiyong and Lu's affairs. Although Lu and Zhu Yunwen are guilty, these matters should actually be handled by me, the queen, but he wants to interfere."

"This isn't right."

"You are my own child, and I raised you. I know that even if he did these things, you would not be lazy in the future. He was also thinking about you, fearing that those old ministers would become increasingly arrogant, and it would be difficult to end up like this after you ascend the throne."

"You have the ability, and I believe you can be a good emperor, but what about the future?"

"If every emperor, starting from your father and you, paves the way for their sons in this way, then it would be a miracle!"

"You have told me about the ridiculous emperors of the Ming Dynasty. Some of them were incompetent, some were mediocre, and some were lazy people who didn't want to do anything in the palace. Your father arranged a team and future plans for you. You can do it, but how many people can be as diligent and filial as you, and be in harmony with their parents?"

"Biao'er, think carefully about why he is so hesitant now!"

Zhu Biao was suddenly speechless.

He thought he probably understood why his mother was angry.

Ever since he entered the tutoring class and learned about the emperors who would appear in the Ming Dynasty, Dad has been worried. He always wondered what pitfalls had occurred in history and how to formulate national policies in advance to avoid those pitfalls so that his descendants would not step into them in the future.

This is the problem.

If we avoid this pitfall, won’t there be other pitfalls?
Just as my mother said just now, if the emperor is not capable, no matter where the country is or how strong its team is, it will be wiped out sooner or later.

Mr. Song said yesterday, "The Ming Dynasty actually perished during the Wanli period."

There was also a legendary famous minister Zhang Juzheng beside Emperor Wanli, but he did not attend court for such a long time, which dug a big pit for the next three generations of emperors. If there was a wise ruler among these three, the Ming Dynasty would not have perished at that time. But the next few, even if they were not incompetent rulers, could only be said to be mediocre, so the fall of the Ming Dynasty was inevitable.

Going back further, the feudal system established when the country was founded was actually very good. The princes served as feudal princes to guard the borders. They had prestige and manpower. As princes, they were able to bridge the gap between the north and the south that had been divided for hundreds of years, and they also had sufficient military proficiency to resist foreign enemies.

But who could have imagined that he, the crown prince, would die young, leading to Zhu Yunwen ascending the throne?

It is normal for an emperor, who is of a lower generation than him, to want to reduce the power of the vassal states because he cannot control a group of uncles and uncles.

It is also normal that Zhu Di did not want to be a fish on the chopping board.

Therefore, after the Jianwen and Jingnan campaigns, the feudal system was weakened twice, and the benefits of the feudal system were gone. In the end, only 300,000 useless royal family members who knew how to eat and drink were left in the Ming Dynasty. They did nothing good except drag down the Ming Dynasty.

Looking at the series of events that followed, it seems that the feudal system itself had problems, but what was wrong with it in the first place?
If we have to say, the biggest problem is that his father Zhu Yuanzhang, as the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, did not take into account the many changes that would occur in the Ming Dynasty in the next two hundred years when formulating national policies.

But they are not Song Shen, so who can understand so much?

"Mom, I understand what you mean."

Zhu Biao let out a long breath and rubbed his eyebrows vigorously:
"My fourth brother also mentioned the issue of future generations in class today. He said that in the future, all royal children will be sent to train in the army after they reach adulthood. It can be Fengyang, the border fortress, or the sea navy. They need to train their physical strength and spirit, but they will not be given military power or fiefdoms. They will stay in the army for a few years before returning."

"In the future, the crown prince can also work separately from the emperor, one in the south and one in the north, to train the crown prince's abilities."

"You think that Dad is too worried about the future emperor, even too worried... I agree with you."

"But he was also very upset. The Han Chinese finally fought back from the Yuan Dynasty, but it was taken away by the Tartars again. The end of the Qing Dynasty was even worse than the end of the Ming Dynasty. They were a foreign race, and in the end they were beaten by the Japanese pirates. Many people died."

"You didn't see it. When my father heard that part, his face turned pale. That expression might not have been so scary if he found out that all the officials in the court were corrupt."

"I...well, I'll go and try to persuade him. Can you talk to him nicely later?"

Queen Ma looked at her son's sincere expression, and her previously stern face couldn't help but relax.

She was silent for a while, then nodded:
"You are a good child, mother knows."

"I know that he hates the humiliation he will suffer in the Central Plains in the future."

"No one in the world knows him better than I do."

"With his temper, if you talk to him nicely from the beginning, he will definitely not listen. Even if he regrets making a decision, he is still a duck. Even if the sky falls, he has his mouth to hold it up."

"When you talk to him later, tell him that I don't think what he is doing now is wrong, but he is putting the cart before the horse. He is only thinking about the next 200 years and has not thought about whether there will be changes in the next 50 years."

"No matter what, all these problems are ultimately caused by people. Instead of considering so many national policies, we should think about how to educate the descendants of the Zhu family so that they can be upright people first and then emperors!"

(End of this chapter)